You see, I really wanted to buy a good, lightweight bike for my daughter. Her grandparents kindly bought her a bike for her birthday last year.

Whilst it is beautiful to look at it with its pastel pink trimmings and Chopper style handlebars, it is incredibly heavy. So heavy, that she can barely pedal on it. Which defeats the point of having a bike.

Apparently, these bikes have a good resale value but that large initial outlay was not something I was prepared to do. Particularly considering we already had a bike.

I then looked into buying a second-hand bike and lo and behold, I find out that, yes, they really do hold their value. So out of pure desperation, I asked my trusty friend, Mr Google, whether you can hire kids bikes and would you believe it, you can.

Hire a kid’s bike

This is where The Bike Club comes in. An absolutely genius idea where you can hire a top notch bike on a monthly basis for a fraction of the price of a new one. The Bike Club is a new venture that launched in October 2016 and already has over 700 members.

You simply choose your bike using the helpful website guide that suggests the perfect bike based on the child’s age and inside leg measurement. Choose your colour, whether you want a reworked bike or a new bike (marginally more expensive) and then hey presto. About 10 days later your new bike arrives.

We went for the Frog 48 (in pink, obviously) which cost £8.60 per month. We added stabilisers (£1.50), which can be returned at any time, and requested a new bike (as opposed to a reworked bike) at a cost of £1.50. This works out at a total cost of £11.60 per month. There is also a delivery charge of £29.99.

Whilst there is a six-month minimum contract, you are able to upgrade the bike at any time, which is great if you have a child whose legs grow exponentially, like my daughter. After the six months, all contracts are on a monthly rolling basis. You can cancel any time (provided you give 28 days written notice).

Alternatively, if your child has a younger sibling then it’s worth considering the option to buy the bike outright. It’s essentially a hire exchange scheme for bikes. They even offer a family discount for siblings. How thoughtful.

I wish I had thought of this business myself – so so clever. No expensive outlay, no bikes piling up in the garage, no frustration over the speed at which your children grow and no need to spend hours on Gumtree trying to flog your old bike. Just a bike that always fits your child’s needs.

I have chosen not tell my daughter about the upgrade. She may think she can upgrade to a different colour bike every month!

Big thanks to The Bike Club for coming to the rescue with my conundrum and also for giving children the opportunity to learn to ride expensive bikes, inexpensively.

Just so you know, I do not receive any commission for this post from The Bike Club. This is simply a post from a genuine happy customer who wanted to spread the word.